By Adrienne Day
Who were you rooting for last night: the Steelers, the Cardinals, or Team Springsteen? Plus, we have the story behind the Boss' mysterious halftime quip, "I'm going to Disneyland!"
Which Super Bowl movie ads scored big and which got sacked in their own end zone? (Hint: We thought the one for "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was kind of awesome.)
Diddy's Hitmen production team dish on their involvement with Jay-Z's top-secret American Gangster, which is now up for a Best Rap Album Grammy.
If you missed it, check out the very first footage to be released from "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra," which debuted during last night's game.
"Madden NFL 2009" correctly predicted the Super Bowl winner. Multiplayer looks back at how the football franchise has forecast the victors in years past.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — It was just incredible: Millions of people gathered in one spot, waiting on one man. Travelers from across the globe stood for miles wanting to be a piece of Barack Obama history. Walking to the National Mall around 9 a.m. was relatively comfortable. At that point, thousands upon thousands were already in place.
People were up as early as 4 a.m., waiting for the D.C. subway system to open, so they could get to their destinations.
The route to the National Mall down 18th Street was part parade, part civil-rights march. People stood on the sidelines holding up signs that read "From Slavery to History," "Martin Is Smiling Down on Us" and "Prayer Changes Everything" — just an amazing mix of triumph, hope and pride. Read more...
By Jayson Rodriguez, with reporting by Sway J. Calloway
Jay-Z is a self-made man, and he recognizes that President Barack Obama is one too.
Back in the day, Hov was told he couldn't get a recording contract, so he started his own record company to sign himself. Similarly, Obama was told he needed more seasoning before trying his hand at the presidency.
But during a sit-down with MTV News before Jay's concert in Washington, D.C., on Monday night, Jay said he realized Obama's mettle regarding the matter during a conversation they had.
"I think the most important thing [Obama] said to me — 'cause everyone's wondering — it seemed like the dream ticket for him to run for vice president until he got some experience under his belt and then go for president," Jay said.
Read more...
New year, new game. How about it? We get that enterprising DJs love to mash up Jay-Z and random rock acts. First it was the Beatles, then Coldplay, and now, ugh, Radiohead.
While these have been entertaining — and the Beatles one put superproducer Danger Mouse on the map — There can definitely be too much of a good thing. So, in an effort to head off the next bedroom bastardizer at the pass before he or she decides to meld some more Jigga peanut butter with someone else's musical chocolate, here are mash-up concepts we never, ever want to hear or write about: Read more...
By Steven Roberts
Happy birthday, Jay-Z!
We here at MTV News have watched you grow up over the years. From the guy standing next to Jaz-O with a high-top fade, gold anchor chain and an acid-washed denim shearling, to the guy who's part-owner of the Nets, tours with Coldplay and has the hottest chick in the game wearing your chain ... that's right, Hov!
Sorry, but we really couldn't get you anything. Seriously, you headlined Glastonbury, Dale Earnhardt raced you around against Danica Patrick in Monaco, and you're married to Beyoncé!
Most of us have to wait until we are 65, but you've literally retired after every new album. Luckily you came back — we didn't believe it anyway — to bless us with summer anthem ("Big Pimpin' ") after summer anthem ("Give It to Me") after summer anthem ("Izzo [H.O.V.A.]").
Honestly, half of New York wears a fitted Yankees hat because of you. Everyone wanted to drink Cristal because of you (they wanted to drink Armand de Brignac, too, but then they saw the price tag). Everyone will probably start wearing black-rimmed, clear-lens glasses now that you do. It must be like every day is your birthday!
With that said, MTV News would like to take this time out to make fun of you. We've been searching all day for rare, potentially embarrassing footage of you, and we haven't had much luck. Luckily, we found this 10-year-old clip of the owner of the 40/40 Club talking about another club he wanted to join.
By Steven Roberts
Traditional glasses aren't viewed as something "cool." If years of consuming pop-culture have taught us anything, it's that glasses are worn by the socially awkward, the inept: dweebs, dorks and nerds!
While spectacles are worn by people with less-than-perfect vision who are willing to deal with ridicule in order to see well, the cool and beautiful are willing to sacrifice bumping into a small child or two for the sake of vanity. A startling trend has emerged, however: Rappers are wearing glasses.
Rappers are known for being boisterous, braggadocios and badass — they can't walk around looking like Lewis and Gilbert from "Revenge of the Nerds," can they? Sure, artists like DMC and E-40 have worn glasses throughout the years, but they had their own individual style. DMC had Cazal frames, a gold dookie-rope chain and a leather jacket, and E-40 makes up words that sound silly at first, but ultimately catch on and everyone says them. Read more...
U2, Jay-Z, Coldplay, John Legend and Death Cab for Cutie helped launch the new music service (RED)WIRE today with exclusive performances to help fight AIDS in Africa in celebration of World AIDS Day. The premiere of exclusive songs on MSN.com also included performances from Dixie Chicks, the Killers and Elton John, the Police and Elvis Costello, and Sheryl Crow.
The exclusives are part of the launch of (RED)WIRE, a digital magazine that will be delivered to members' desktops every Wednesday with music from artists from around the world, including exclusive weekly tunes from major acts as well as songs from up-and-coming acts and special content ranging from digital shorts to photographs or readings from artists or actors. Half of the $5 monthly subscription fee for the magazine will go directly to the Global Fund to fight AIDS in Africa. If you join before December 10, you can become a "Founding Member" of (RED)WIRE and receive the premiere issue on that day, as well as a special bonus song from Jay-Z.
Content from (RED)WIRE will also be regularly posted on the iLike social-discovery service for streaming and sampling and syndicated to iLike's 30 million registered users.
Wyclef Jean announced on Thursday that he's joining the bill for Jay-Z's "Last Chance for Change" free voter-registration concert in Miami's Bayfront Park Amphitheater this Sunday. The show, hosted by Obama for America, will encourage young attendees to get involved with the Obama campaign. Jean will not be on the bill the previous night at Jay's free show in Detroit, which like the Miami show, is open to fans 18 and older.
And it looks like that other staple of Obama's playlist, Bruce Springsteen, is upping the ante in supporting the candidate. In addition to the Obama benefit with Billy Joel on October 16 in New York, Springsteen has also announced a series of free solo acoustic dates that will double as Obama rallies and voter-registration drives, Billboard.com reports. The Boss will play an open-air rally on Saturday in Philadelphia, followed by a Sunday show on the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus.
He'll also perform next Monday at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. Anyone interested in attending the Philly show has to sign up on Obama's Web site. Tickets for the Eastern Michigan show will be available on campus on Friday, and Columbus residents can get tickets at the Obama campaign offices on the OSU campus.
Who's the better rapper: Jay-Z or United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon?
That was the question on everyone's minds at last night's U.N. Global Leadership Gala, where Jay was being honored for his work with the U.N. and MTV on the "Water for Life" initiative.
Ki-moon paid tribute to the MC/honoree at the New York event by rapping for five minutes to the crowd. I believe two of the stanzas went something like this: "So many people out there experiencing so much strife/ Their life needs water ... Water for Life" and "I may be old, but I'm still a learner/ I see many friends out there, I see Ted Turner." Read more...
We already know that Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama is a fan of hip-hop. Now Jay-Z, one of the artists he's given a shout-out to on the campaign trail, will return the favor this weekend by putting on two free shows encouraging young voters to get out and support Obama in Detroit and Miami.
Read more about Jay-Z's concerts for Obama here.
